Three Election Annulments and Sports Ministry Silence; Sports Federations on Shaky Ground

From bodybuilding to taekwondo and equestrian: As federation elections reach the courts, many questions arise about candidates' eligibility and the quality of Sports Ministry oversight. Sports community members must be informed about these issues to avoid further confusion.

According to the sports service of Ambassador Arjan, the cancellation of the elections of three sports federations within a few days, once again brought the issue of the health of elections in Iranian sports to the forefront. The elections that were supposed to lead to the determination of the task of managing the federations, but their results have been questioned in the judicial authorities.

The elections of the Federation of Bodybuilding and Bodybuilding, which were held on August 20 and resulted in the election of Mojtaba Maleki, were declared invalid by the decision of the 13th branch of the General Legal Court of Tehran's Shahid Beheshti Judicial Complex. Before that, the news of the cancellation of the elections of Taekwondo and equestrian federations was published. Although the issued votes are primitive and objectionable, they do not change anything in practice.

Last year, the elections of the athletics federation faced a serious challenge, but we all saw what happened in the end, so that Ehsan Haddadi would continue to manage this federation. Anyway, the repetition of such events raises serious questions about the mechanism of verifying the qualifications of candidates, the way of monitoring the holding of election assemblies and the responsibility of the organizing institutions. Why do some disputes and legal problems reach the stage of judicial review after holding elections? Are all necessary inquiries done before voting? If there is a flaw in a candidate's documents or conditions, why isn't it always determined before the assembly?

The conditions of the candidates and the statutes are clear!

Contrary to the impression that may be created from the repetition of these cases, the elections of sports federations are not held without rules. Article 22 of the statutes of sports federations specifies the general conditions of the presidential candidates, but the principle is that the qualifications of the candidates should be checked before the elections based on legal documents and criteria. The main question is how to implement these regulations. Are documents and records fully verified? Are inquiries made in a timely manner? Are approval or disqualification decisions documented and defensible?

Implementation Commission; Safi or station of differences?

Examining the qualifications of the candidates before holding the assembly is one of the most important stages of the federation elections. At this stage, candidates' qualifications and conditions must be matched with relevant regulations so that foreseeable differences can be resolved before voting. The case of the bodybuilding federation shows that the dispute over the qualifications of the candidates can be extended to the post-election stage. Abdol Mahdi Nasirzadeh, the former president of this federation, whose permission to participate in the elections was not approved by the Implementation Commission of the Ministry of Sports, followed through the judicial process and finally the election was annulled.

To accurately judge this case, the full text of the court decision and the legal arguments of the parties should be reviewed, but the essence of the matter raises a question beyond the candidates' dispute. If the decision of the reconciliation commission about the presence or absence of a candidate can lead to the annulment of the election result, what mechanism is there to ensure the correctness and legal validity of this decision?

Defects revealed after voting!

One of the notable examples is the electoral record of the Bodybuilding Federation. Last year, the result of the election of this federation was invalidated due to the problem of the educational qualification of the elected president. Before the August elections this year, the media had warned about some ambiguities and constitutional requirements.

This record shows the necessity of a more detailed examination of the performance of the responsible institutions. If a defect in the electoral documents or procedures can be identified, it should be clarified why it was not fixed before voting. If the dispute was caused by the different interpretation of the regulations, it should be determined why the dispute resolution mechanism could not reach a conclusion before holding the elections. Of course, not all election annulment cases can be considered the same. In one case, the problem may be related to the conditions of the candidate, and in another case, to the way the assembly is held, or to non-compliance with legal procedures, or perhaps to financial and administrative violations.

Are eligibility criteria transparent and applied uniformly?

The existence of legal conditions alone is not enough to guarantee the integrity of elections. Regulations must be implemented in such a way as to prevent the entry of unqualified persons and to preserve the rights of qualified candidates. On the other hand, concepts such as reliability and trust need clear, documented and uniform criteria. If there is no clear procedure about these concepts, the risk of arbitrary decisions increases.

On the other hand, the mere existence of a complaint or legal dispute against a candidate does not automatically mean that he is legally disqualified from participating in the elections. Disqualification must be done based on valid criteria and reliable information; Just like the confirmation of eligibility, it should be the result of a complete review of the necessary documents and inquiries.

Accountability of the Ministry of Sports regarding supervisory performance!

Now there are clear questions before the Ministry of Sports. What institution is responsible for the final verification of candidates' documents? Are all necessary inquiries done before the election? If the regulatory authorities warn about the status of a candidate or a problem in the election process, what is the mechanism for immediate action? If the decision of a commission or the manner of holding the meeting is violated by the judicial authority, how will its administrative and legal responsibility be investigated? Clarification of these questions can determine whether we are dealing with case errors, deficiencies in regulations, or weaknesses in the implementation of supervision. In all three cases, the repeated cancellation of elections shows that simply holding the assembly and announcing the elected president is not enough to ensure the legality of the result. Although Ahmed Dunyamali said about the annulment of the elections of the Taekwondo Federation: "This is a preliminary vote and we have a chance to protest." We have three weeks to follow up on the matter and it is not a special issue." But the answers to many questions are not clear and it is better for the Ministry of Sports to leave the silence.

The cost of uncertainty on the shoulders of athletes!

Any invalidated election, in addition to administrative and financial costs, can weaken the management stability of the federation. Frequent managerial changes and legal disputes make long-term planning, implementation of the tournament calendar, preparation of national teams and interaction with international bodies more difficult. Federations are responsible for managing sports fields, supporting athletes and implementing championship programs. If the process of choosing their managers repeatedly faces legal problems, its consequences can be transferred to the entire sports field.

Annulment of the election alone does not prove that the elected candidate was incompetent or that all the observers failed. For such a conclusion, the reasons for each vote, case documents, and defenses of the parties should be examined, but the repetition of these events highlights the necessity of accountability regarding the quality of supervision of federation elections.

The Ministry of Sports and Youth is expected to explain about the qualification review process, the mechanism for dealing with protests, and the measures it has taken to prevent the repeated cancellation of elections. Also, the publication of clear eligibility criteria, the announcement of documentation of decisions to reject or approve candidates within the framework of the law, and determining the responsibility of each stage of the election can prevent the recurrence of predictable disputes.

Elections of federations should not enter the trial and error stage after holding them. If the rules are clear, they should be properly implemented before voting, and if the rules are ambiguous, they should be amended before the result of an assembly is questioned by a court decision.